


Solace

by Tall_skinny_scottish



Category: The Evil Within (Video Game)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, In which Ruben tries to comfort someone, by sneaking up behind them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-20
Updated: 2016-03-20
Packaged: 2018-05-27 21:55:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6301825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tall_skinny_scottish/pseuds/Tall_skinny_scottish
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He can’t bring himself to turn around and walk away from the sinister display. It's like the flames are slowly consuming the sanity that’s left inside of him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Solace

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this for a friend, who requested "RuSeb + tears". It's quite short and I don't really know where it came from, but here we are. Also, english is not my native language so I apologize for the grammar mistakes you will probably find.

He hasn’t thought he would stumble across a vivid memory of his house. Until now, all Sebastian has seen in STEM are fragments of someone’s else broken mind. And yet, here he is, standing in front of a pathetic replica of a building that isn’t even real. Nor does it exist in the real world. Not anymore. 

His feet are stuck to the ground and he can only stare at the house as it suddenly bursts into flames. Sebastian doesn’t flinch, not even like he did in the barn a few hours ago when the fire surrounded the ghostly figures of the Victoriano siblings.

There is nothing he can do about it, running inside like a madman would be like giving this damned world a proof that he finally lost it. But at the same time, he can’t bring himself to turn around and walk away from the sinister display. It’s like the flames are slowly consuming the sanity that’s left inside of him. 

So he stares. 

A high-pitched scream that sends a chill down his spine reaches Sebastian’s ears, and he wonders if it’s simply his imagination or if this world is toying with his tired mind again. Suddenly, all the memories from _that night_ rush back to his mind – they never really disappeared – as the flames break free from the house in what looks like a desperate attempt to reach the sky. 

Before Sebastian can even tell it, tears are relentlessly running down his cheeks. 

He can tell, however, that two arms are slowly wrapping themselves around his torso, like a snake restraining its prey in a deadly embrace. Sebastian doesn’t even look down. Doing so would only confirm what he already knows. Death has found him. Or rather, a burned man hiding his scarred face under a dirty old hood.

The embrace _should_ feel like death, but it doesn’t. Instead it feels almost…comforting?

Despite the heat – coming from the flames – that’s currently warming his face, Ruben’s body is icy against his back. Sebastian’s eyes are still glued to the burning house and the cold in his back is surprisingly more appealing to him than the flames are, and will ever be. The temptation of turning around is strong, but he successfully fights it off.

“I am deeply sorry you went through this.”

Taken aback by the man's words Sebastian stays silent for a while, until his curiosity becomes too much for him to bear. He wants to ask questions, to understand why Ruben didn't kill him on the spot or put him through yet another layer of what begins to feel like Dante's Inferno. “I didn’t know you could feel compassion towards a human being.” 

Sebastian knows better than to think a cold hearted killer is deprived of any form of compassion, but after wandering in STEM for what seems like weeks, he can't help but think otherwise. After everything he saw, everything he went through, the detective got a pretty accurate glimpse of what exactly is lurking inside Ruben's corrupted mind.

The right side of the lunatic’s burnt face is resting between Sebastian’s shoulders blades and after a few minutes, he's convinced that the man retreated into silence once and for all, thus stopping him from hearing Ruben's deep voice again. However, he finds himself deeply mistaken.

“Only when I can understand their pain.” 

Sebastian is at a loss of words. How can this man, who murdered a countless number of innocent people, be the same man who's currently trying to make what seems like a pitiful attempt at comforting one of his victims? It doesn't make any sense.

Perhaps he's finally going insane, it was only a matter of time anyway. Or, his exhausted mind whispers to him, maybe this is just another one of Ruben's little games. Toying with the broken detective, pulling the strings while watching him from above as Sebastian tries to survive in a world that isn't his own.

But what could he possibly gain from this? Is it just for his entertainment?

While Sebastian is trying to find a plausible explanation, he suddenly realizes something.

Ruben is gone. 

 

* * *

 

When Sebastian watches him burn, a few hours later, he is hit by the memory of their earliest encounter and before he can even think about what he’s going to do – about the madness of it – he stands up and reaches for Ruben’s burning hand.

He can't help it. The flames are dancing on Ruben's already scared skin – a second time – and Sebastian can't watch as someone is being burnt alive, even if the person undeniably deserves it. Can't watch as the flames grow ravenous, trying to satiate their greed by devouring what's left of Ruben's gaunt body.

Not again, not when he already failed _her_.

Closing his eyes, he presses the man’s body against his own like he would for a victim. The detective can’t even feel the flames and when he opens his eyes, they are gone. They simply vanished and it feels like his sanity just did the same thing. Against him, there is only a thin body, bearing the scars of Ruben’s childhood. But he knows better than to think the scars are only physical.

Sebastian is holding out his wrist for the snake to bite it, and he is painfully aware of it. But even if the snake’s bite is poisonous, he has a feeling the poison won’t kill him. It's all a matter of instinct and since this whole nightmare began, his instinct has been pretty useful.

Ruben's face is pressed against Sebastian's chest and as the man closes his eyes, it's obvious he's trying to regain his breath and get a hold of himself. The dreadful memories of the fire are still inked into his skin and most importantly, into his mind.

His hands are gripping his savior's shirt which, after hours of running and fighting for his life, is almost as dirty as Ruben's hood. Sebastian can't help but be surprised by how tightly he grasps the shirt and even wonders if Ruben would be able to stand on his feet if he wasn't holding him. Probably not.

For a moment, the only sound in the corridor is the sound of Ruben's ragged breathing. When he eventually speaks, the tone of his voice is dull. 

“I didn’t know you would save a murderer from the flames.” Sebastian immediately spots the reference to the words he has spoken to Ruben earlier, but it's not clear if the words are filled with sarcasm or not.

The answer has already slipped past his lips before he can stop it, or even think about it. “Only when I can understand their pain.” 

Ruben's mocking laugh doesn't come as a surprise, Sebastian was expecting it.

"Are you foolish enough to think I deserve comfort, detective? Is your recklessness big enough to make you throw yourself into the lion's den, after surviving this long?" He asks, before whispering something along the lines of "pitiful".

Absently looking at the dark and empty corridor behind Ruben, Sebastian doesn't even try to strike back. It's all a game, and he currently doesn't care about wining or losing it. "Shut up." His grip tightens around Ruben's frail body and Sebastian struggles not to take one step back and call off this unexpected truce.

It doesn’t excuse the atrocities Ruben has committed, nothing ever will, but damn, it feels good to hold someone who went through the same things as he did. The fire, the loss of a loved one, the solitude that came next.

If Ruben has surprisingly obeyed the order for a minute or so, he soon opens his mouth again. "I'm surprised to notice that your sanity is in an even worse state than I first presumed."

A chuckle comes from Sebastian, who leans even closer to the lunatic's neck. “I guess so." He shrugs. "You know I’m still going to kill you, right?” The detective whispers against Ruben’s good ear. Consequences are not something he's afraid of. The threat probably sounds ridiculous to the burned man but he can’t let him think he has fallen into the trap of compassion. At least not entirely.

Ruben completely ignores his words and the only sound that reaches Sebastian’s ears is a soft hum. "Caring too much is going to get you killed. This world has no mercy for those who let their compassion take over their survival instinct."

"Do you? Have mercy, I mean."

Ruben doesn't have any issues breathing anymore, but his grip on Sebastian is still strong. If it was out of genuine fear earlier, it now looks like an act of possessiveness. _You're mine_.

"This is not the question you should ask, _Seb_."

"Oh, really? I'm curious, enlighten me then." For a moment, Sebastian forgets about the constant threat that Ruben represents. About the sword that is swinging above his head and has been doing so from the start. He's even confident enough to use a sarcastic tone, consequences be damned. If anything, it will probably entertain Ruben even more.

"The real question is wether or not you will still be able to feel compassion for me after all the things I'm gonna do to you." The words are far from being a surprise, as Sebastian heard a similar promise a few hours ago.

"You already put me through a lot."

He doesn't need to look down to know that Ruben is smirking. It can easily be heard in the man's voice.

"And yet you still underestimate what I'm capable of."

With that, the iciness of Ruben's body against his own suddenly disappears, but Sebastian unexpectedly feels colder than ever.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it! Now I need to finish another RuSeb little fic, which will be funnier than this one. I promise.


End file.
